Use the Force
by Ghost rider 1-3
Summary: Before Rey was a member of the Resistance, before she met the runaway stormtrooper Finn, Rey was nothing more than a fellow scavenger, stuck in a endless loop of daily routines...until she detects a mysterious presence in the middle of the desert one day.
1. Chapter 1

Another Day in the Desert

28 ABY

Rey tore the twisted dashboard off from the walls of the hallway of the crashed star destroyer. Inside was a dark and narrow hole none other than a Loth-cat could fit through, with a pile of hydraulics and electronic wastes lying in its end and a spider net holed inside it.

The adolescent scavenger reached out for the seemingly worthless scraps, and dumped them in her makeshift duffel bag which was already half full thanks to her unceasing efforts throughout the day. She left with her prize, and headed towards the disabled main reactors where the only known exit to her was located. On some days she wouldn't give up until her bag was completely full, but with a customer waiting for her today, she couldn't afford to collapse in the middle of the desert because of her lack of strength.

 _Hopefully all these can keep me from starving for another week._

Rey was hardly as prestigious as most other children in the Galaxy. Ever since she was a child her parents had left her for whatever reason. She never figured out what that reason might be, but the hope of her parents' return has never faded even in her darkest hours.

She had been working for Dephase for at least a year now, another fellow scavenger that unlike her, had means of accessing food and other necessities than Rey craved so bad. And as an exchange for food Rey would hand over her everyday findings to whoever that took the name of Dephase, his own spaceship which rested in the Niima Outpost.

The light from outside the wrecked destroyer nearly blinded her, and as she took her time to readjust her eyes loud clangs came from behind her, a phenomenon that happens every once in a while, most likely because of critical parts being torn off the already weakened structure of the wreckage.

 _Just a little more and I can have a speeder from him. No more four hour walks in the desert._

Dephase has recently said he'll be leaving Jakku on the following day, which was surprisingly, quite depressing for Rey. Dephase had been one of the few scavengers that was kind to her, and his absence would mean she'll be forced to rely on Plutt for rations if she wished to continue her life on the desert planet.

A Teedo passed by as she marched wearily across the desert. Fortunately for her the parts she carried were not in its interest, and it ignorantly went on with its own salvage. By then Rey was already halfway there, and the sun was still high up in the sky, meaning she has plenty of time to take care of business and return to Hellhound 2 before nightfall approaches.

Hours had passed by the time she reaches the Skydiver, the place she always goes to after a scavenger hunt, and home of the quite reclusive yet friendly Dephase. From her memory he has rarely stepped foot outside his ship, and only speaks when he absolutely has to. Yet this man had offered her quite a decent pay, considering he was the reason Rey still had a whole stash of untouched rations stored inside the downed walker in the Goazon Badlands.

Rey silently left the pile of scraps outside the ramp of the futuristic Gauntlet transport, and awaited for the masked man's arrival. Soon enough an armoured figure with a black robe stepped out of the ramp, and received the finding of the young scavenger in a casual manner.

He reached for his belt's pocket as he did every time Rey paid him a visit with a net full of recovered scraps, and counted eight portions out of it, no more, no less. "Don't eat it all at once, as always." He warned like he always did. Rey nodded enthusiastically, and watched as he headed back into his ship with what he was promised.

The customised Gauntlet lifted off the ground moments later, leaving Rey and a shroud of dust picking off the ground as its thrusters came to life. She wasn't exactly sad to see him go, but it certainly wasn't a good thing, either.

She took out some parts from her pocket and glanced at them, which didn't seem to be of any significant use at all. But to her, they were some of the key components to her homemade speeder resting in the cargo hold of her home, a tool she was eager to complete.

 _Another few hours of endless walking._

She soon headed off towards where the sun was setting and back to Hellhound 2, across the dunes and along the ridges of the desert as she progressed. The path was long and seemed endless, but with all the weight of the salvaged given to Dephase, she managed to make it through half of the trip before her legs started to feel the slightest bit of fatigue.

"Almost there, almost there..." She kept whispering to herself along the way.

 _Ouch!_

 _What was that?_

Rey frantically scanned the open area, trying to search for the origin of the sudden jolt in her head. It was most likely her midi-chlorians inside her blood acting up, but never has it been so significant and worrying to her.

Rey tried to wait it out and move on, but after standing still for a solid minute like a statue she realised there was no leaving of that sensation. And to her surprise, it seemed to grow even stronger than before, maybe even from a specific direction.

For a moment or so she was tempted to follow the mysterious presence, but the other half of her said that it was getting late, and it would be most rational to be back to the downed walker as soon as possible. She struggled for at least a minute, and finally her adventurous spirit reigned victorious, making her legs spin to her right and start pacing towards the dimming sky.


	2. Chapter 2

Leo

28 ABY

 _Come on...where are you?_

Rey walked on while the sky completely shaded itself. And when she finally came to a stop she found herself staring at a cave with zero illumination. The mysterious sensation only grew stronger as she walked deeper into the cave, dangerously strong. But not strong enough to stop Rey from venturing inside.

She had no torchlight or any other means for her to see clearly in there, and she knew well that was only a tip of the iceberg of the hazards that might lie ahead. Nonetheless she moved deeper and deeper, until the light of the moons above could no longer reach inside, leaving her nearly complete blind and vulnerable to booby traps.

And that's how she spent at least fifteen minutes in there until she was totally disorientated, leaving her with no option but to follow her midi-chlorians, occasionally causing her to run into pillars of rocks and fall over upon unsuspected footsteps.

Out of nowhere a rod stuck out the floor below her, nearly giving Rey a painful face plant. She reached to examine the rod out of curiosity, only to find that the rod she felt was in fact a pair of legs.

Frightened by the sudden encounter, she leaped backwards onto a puddle of water. Moments later she managed to calm herself, and somehow convinced her brain that this boy lying in front of him can stay here no longer, and should be taken back to her place at once.

So with all the strength she could gather from her muscles, Rey lifted the adolescent body from the freezing ground, and didn't stop to rest until she managed to leave from where she came, with a little help of her midi-chlorians.

She renewed her grip on the body and carried him across the desert, unclear whether he could be saved or if it's just a waste of strength due to her lack of education. But either way, she wasn't dropping him and leaving him behind.

"Home at last!" She cried out after hours of heavy-lifting as she entered the wrecked walker of Hellhound 2. She laid the body on her bed, and scooped her dusty blanket off the ground to cover the freezing boy. But after that, there wasn't really anything else she could do for him, other than wait for him to wake up or something.

By then she was starving badly, and without a second thought she headed to her stack of rations, right next to a pile of electronic junk she never bothered to clean up. She pulled out yet another pack of grey consumables from her stash and emptied them out into a bowl, while starting up her flight simulation computer lying next to her as she always did to keep her from getting bored.

Her supper was ready in only a matter of seconds, allowing her to finish it while enjoying herself in front of her simulation computer. That, along with occasional surprises of good people who came across her, were the best parts of her life. Because who would've thought she could get her hands on something that close to a video game.

She had been playing for another ten minutes when she heard an anomaly from her makeshift bedroom. Suspecting that the boy might've actually woken up from his long cold sleep, Rey paused her match and walked to her room, but not without bringing some of her belongings with her.

Out of nowhere a lightsaber, or rather, two, were ignited in front of her neck, nearly causing her to shriek. Yet the blades never went to cut her down, instead they were extinguished and holstered away by the boy when he realised his target was totally harmless.

"What is this place?" He asked calmly.

"Jakku." Rey simply replied, not knowing what the boy was going to ask next.

"And you are..." He stood up from her bed slowly, praying that he didn't break his bones during his blackout.

"My name is Rey."

The boy couldn't help scanning the walker he's standing in, while Rey was frantically trying to think of something to just say to him. "What's you name?" She asked after a long silence.

"Leo. You have to help me." He replied anxiously. "I have a vision of something terrible, and it's bound to happen."

Rey plopped down on her bed and gestured the boy Leo to do the same, which he accepted. "A vision?" She asked, with flashbacks of her last vision of Leo racing past her mind. Could it be the same he's experiencing? There's no way to tell for sure.

"There's a turncoat within the Jedi Order." He explained briefly, but became hesitant to go on as vivid images of a bloody slaughtering in a tower that stretched into the high skies of Coruscant flooded into his mind.

At last he described what he saw to a confused Rey, mostly because she, unlike him, knew nothing about the Jedi Order that he kept on mentioning. Despite her confusion, Rey decided to wait it out until the boy finished his story. "...and all but master Luke is dead. I need to stop him, but I don't know who that might be."

"But then what're you doing here? Because in my knowledge a barren wasteland like this one isn't going to get you anywhere." She asked.

"Of course I tried to warn master Luke first. He turned a blind eye, though. And I've been left with no other option than running." Leo answered frustratedly, obviously quite devastated due to the fact that he had to run away like a coward just to keep his skin from a stubborn master and the traitor in the midst. Lucky for him Rey was the least bit angered by his actions, and she simply had him get some rest in her walker until first light.

Leo was quite reluctant to rest at first, too fuelled to stop the evil's plot. But after some smart talking to the apprentice, he calmed his nerves down and decided the best thing to do for now is to really lie down and clear his mind. Once Leo did so Rey strolled outside empty-handed, trying to relax herself by staring aimlessly at the glowing stars that were as bright as the sun itself shining them.

 _I might get to visit all of them, one day. One day._


	3. Chapter 3

I am One With the Force

28 ABY

Rey blinked her eyes wearily and tried to lift up her eyebrows already retaliating and trying to tempt her back to her sleep. But from this day on things weren't the same as always. Not only does she have a guest with magic powers that takes a lifetime to understand and master, but also a mission told from his own words. She bounced off her mattress, and woke the asleep Leo up as well as herself.

"Holy...! What time is it?" was the first thing Leo asked when the sudden rude awakening came down to him.

"About half past six. I know what you're gonna say." Rey replied after catching sight of his slightly irritated look.

"...that it's too early for me?" Leo asked as he sat up from the layers of carpet Rey made for him. "In fact, I think I slept in. The Jedi Order were always early birds."

He got off from the mattress and reached for his lightsabers supposingly holstered on his back, only to find that he placed them on Rey's half bent desk so as not to let them keep him awake all night. Instead of clamping them back to his belt, he handed one to Rey, and held the other with his free hand.

"So, are you going to help me or not?" He asked sternly, knowing that the lives of Master Luke and many of his younglings are at stake. _I will do it alone,_ he thought, _shall I ever be so unfortunate to have to stand alone against this invisible evil._

Lucky for Rey she had already went through Leo's request before she passed out last night. "I might lose my life over all this. And I have to wait for my parent to return here. I know they will."

Leo sighed in despair, but of all the padawans and younglings he knew the best that respecting others' decision is a must-do under any circumstances. He was about to say his farewell to Rey and take off into the desert when Rey's voice made him halt.

"But they probably won't be happy either if I let someone get killed." She added, instantly reviving Leo's inner spirit.

"I take it as a yes?" He asked enthusiastically.

Rey simply nodded.

"But we aren't going anywhere without some practice." Leo suggested and tuned his to non-lethal mode. Rey stared at the boy for a second, then fiddled with her borrowed lightsaber until she figured out how to ignite it. Leo helped her tune it to the right mode, and hurriedly got into a Vaapad stance, ready for any attacks the newblood Rey might come up with.

"Ready?" Leo asked.

"Born ready." Rey returned confidently. As a matter of fact handling a close quarter weapon wasn't new for the scavenger. Every once in a while she would have to beat off other scavengers with her Jo stick, just to keep her fingers and her findings intact.

Leo quickly rotated his wrists and slammed the saber onto the dust, barely missing Rey. She swung her lightsaber to Leo's left arm to retaliate, only to be blocked when Leo freed his right hand and deflected her attack with his other arm. He raised his right arm and managed to lift the rather skinny Rey in the air, shocking her and ceasing her attempts to attack him.

"This is the kind of enemy we're facing, maybe even stronger." He released Rey and allowed her to drop feet first. Rey pointed her blade forward directly at Leo and made a beeline for his chest, yet Leo was smart enough to dodge and slash Rey's back, missing on purpose to allow her to understand the way of the lightsaber, not getting electrocuted by the lightsaber now in stun mode.

"Winning doesn't always mean attacking head-on." Leo explained and lent Rey a helpful hand. She hurriedly got into an assault stance she came up with on her own, and was ready to electrocute Leo when he suddenly dashed forward. Rey instinctively got out of the way, and allowed herself to gain the upper hand and hit Leo's blind spots. "You see, sometimes you have to get out of the way."

Rey was enlightened, and followed this new principle until her blade clashed with Leo's, their eyes staring at each other excitedly. She's a fast learner, even if it would take all of her wits to master that skill. She intentionally slipped out of her position, causing Leo to fall and allowing her to call her first win in hours of vigorous practice under the blazing sun.

"Finally." She simply said as she pointed the sharp end at Leo's face. Leo acknowledged by simply nodding his head, and got back on his feet with his sweaty palm still holding his lightsaber tight as ever. "You're a scavenger. Don't you need to go make a living or something?" Leo couldn't help questioning.

"Indeed I do." Rey answered, just as Leo feared. "But don't worry. I have so much rations I can go on for weeks. The salvaging can wait."

She looked up at the sky, only to be nearly blinded by the ultraviolet fired from the sun some parsecs away. "Besides, I might get heatstroke if I go." She continued.

"Good to know. Speaking of heatstroke my chest is burning too." Leo used his shirt as a fan and tried to cool himself down, but was heated up again in a split second thanks to the sun. "Man, I was just freezing to death last night!"

"I know, right." Rey replied and decided that it's best to stay inside the walker for now, until dusk. She led Leo back into the Hellhound 2, and disappeared from the vast desert of Jakku.

* * *

Concealed in the notorious underworld of a distant planet of Coruscant was a chamber with no light but several candles that have been burning for days. A door made out of rock was lifted by a short figure in a cloak fit to his size. On his belt was a comlink, and the sacred weapon only Jedi were ever allowed to carry.

The boy hopped off the ladder leading to the deeper levels of the chamber, and set foot on an array of red circles glowing under his boots. He kneeled with his eyes focused on the ground, awaiting the hologram in front of him to be activated.

Soon enough his wait was rewarded with the image of a rather old man with a deformed face and an obvious scar off his right eye. The image was at least five times larger than the boy, but even if it was ten times the boy would not be afraid or have any reason to afraid. He answers to this old man, secretly.

"You summoned me." The boy greeted.

"Indeed I did. How are your preparations?" A deep and loud voice played from the other side of the chamber.

"Everything's going as planned, master. As for now you and I are the only ones who know." The boy replied, his eyes still glued on the rock floor.

"Very well. It won't be necessary to come to me. The next time we meet, it will be in person." At last the image vanished, leaving the boy commonly called Kylo Ren staring at the circles plotting his next move.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Plots to Leave

The dim underworld of Coruscant was never known for being pleasant, not even to the lowest in the society. But here was Ren, camouflaged in his hood strolling through the streets and walking around lamp posts. He was kind of forced, in his own words, as he wanted as less attention and less people to know about his plans as possible.

The night time of Coruscant has never been so helpful to him. The last few times he came down here at night all ended in a load of trouble. Th first time was an attempted robbery, which was foiled when Ren suddenly landed brutal attacks using only his bare hands. There was no word of the incident ever since he dragged the unconscious intruder into an infested alley to get rid of the evidence.

The rugged houses lined up in a parallel formation until a small junction blocked the road. Further ahead was the continuation of the buildings that got slightly taller and then shorter again, looping infinitely until fifteen minutes and a mile later where a speeder park was located. Ren flipped the hood off his head as he approached his speeder, no different to most other speeders within the two-storey parking lot.

He pushed the joystick of his speeder to the right and to the exit after he unlocked it with a remote in his pocket. And in a moment's notice his craft was airborne and among a line of traffic, all heading to the sector where the majority of New Republic facilities were located. Only he wasn't heading to get himself screened by a line of soldiers and scientists, he was heading back to the temple while he'd still not raise an alarm if he made it back on time.

When he was halfway through his walk in the underworld he made a pit stop at a store in the middle of the block. There he got his hands on some sticky charges he'd been so desperate to find. Months of planning and rehearsing were nearly coming to an end, and it was time for the rogue youngling to get the right equipment to pull all this off.

Across the known galaxy, another plot was taking place inside the young mind of youngling Leo and the scavenger Rey. Though they weren't planning to cause mass destruction and casualties, their plan could be equally dangerous when everything falls into place.

A speeder was everyone's must-have, but a spaceship was a whole different matter as its cost and maintenance were a whole different level. Meaning the only way for Rey and Leo to get their hands on one was through a coordinated theft. Neither of them were a fan of it, but they both agreed some steps were necessary.

So every other day their shadows could be found in nearby towns and villages, especially if there's a retired spacecraft lying around. It took them half a week to set their sights on a two-seater fighter from the times of the Clone wars, located in the starship graveyard as every other option involves them meeting the grim reaper.

Normally they'd still need a pilot suit to go anywhere else, but Rey suggested that they'll do fine without it. "Just no stunts." She stated. Leo reluctantly agreed as he carried on gathering every part the Y-Wing was missing with the exception of fuel. They would have to search the destroyed Ravager nearby for the tibanna it runs on.

It has been a week and a half since Leo and Rey started their spaceship hunt. They've got just enough rest to make it all the way to the graveyard with all the tools. And after that one would get the starfighter fixed while the other fills up bottles of tibanna and return. None of them though about anything after that.

It was rare for a scavenger to hunt at night, and the pair decided to take advantage of that. They departed at dusk without saying much, and arrived at the windy graveyard as the sky painted itself with darkness. The stars were the only light they could see, save for the torch Leo borrowed from his companion. He left for the now tilted and disabled Ravager and treaded through the sinking sand seeming ready to consume him any moment, with the bottles strapped to his back and hip.

He tripped over a couple of times to make it to the secondary hangar of the once almighty super destroyer. There he caught sight of a tipped fuelling droid with half of its tank still filled with precious tibanna. "Well that didn't take too long." He whispered to himself.

Out of nowhere he felt a slap landing on his shoulder. Startled by the sudden jolt he turned around. "Rey? I thought you're supposed to be..." He asked, only to find an angry red eye staring at his. Acting on instinct his lightsaber was drawn from his belt and made short work of the protocol droid starving for power and instructions. But as he ignited his weapon he noticed he wasn't alone in the hangar. The droid that though he was a power output brought some nasty friends as well.

Not wanting to waste stamina, Leo carefully used his Force and evasion skills to speed up his progress. He would run into fuel-hungry droids every once in a while, sometimes forcing him to make use of his lightsaber. It ended up taking almost an hour just to gather the much needed tibanna, but Leo could care less about the time. To him, finishing his job of protecting his comrades at Coruscant was way more important.

"How are the repairs going?" He shouted as he stumbled out the wreckage of the super star destroyer with bottles of tibanna. The weight of the fuel was taking a toll on his weary body, giving him trouble to stay in a straight line. Rey noticed it, and rushed to carry a part of his load to the Y-wing.

"Pretty solid. We can go within half an hour." She replied. "Let's hope no one else sees this ship. Heard its price tag is pretty high."

"How so?" Asked Leo.

"The older something is, the more somebody would pay to get their hands on it. And don't ask me how I know that."

Leo instinctively glances around upon hearing Rey's advice. He was relieved to see no flashlight but their own. But the other smugglers weren't their only problem. The invisible spikes and needles hammering their exposed skin was dragging their body temperature way below normal levels, definitely not helpful to the adolescent bodies of theirs. by the time the Y-wing was ready to fly they were both on the brink of hypothermia. Nonetheless they listened to the humming of the twin engines and the retracting landing gear as a shroud of G-force started running down their bodies.

None of them muttered a word from the moment they strapped themselves to the seats of the Old Republic starfighter, as Leo was fast asleep and Rey was concentrated on keeping the craft stable until it made its way out of Jakku's atmosphere and into a hyperdrive course to a space station some parsecs away from a hub called Takodana. there they would take a brief stop for refuelling and arming themselves and more detailed planning before they approach the place Leo calls home.


	5. Chapter 5

Author note: The chapters after this one assume that the events of The Last Jedi did not happen. You have been warned.

* * *

Chapter 5

Last Day in the Dark

A Jedi youngling almost a whole head taller than Kylo Ren, or Ben Solo, lashed at him with a single green bladed lightsaber. Despite having a crossguard lightsaber in his hands and the upper hand in terms of service, Ben Solo found himself in a breath taking struggle against a more physically fit youngling. Perhaps this youngling never intended to be any less aggressive than the day he would have to encounter a true Sith, like a number of other members of the newly restored Jedi Order.

Solo flipped behind the youngling to avoid a literally stunning blade coming down his head. Thanks to the power of the Force he avoided certain defeat, for three seconds. The youngling was quick to turn around to resume the rather powerful attacks. To save energy against a foe he well understood, Solo avoided blocking him directly and instead launched blitzkrieg assaults every time the youngling ever so slightly pauses his relentless slashes.

The stalemate lasted for yet another five minutes, and every once a while one would utilize the walls or any obstacle they could get their legs on to their advantage. One after another some bystanders who have just completed their session or came back from the archives some stories underneath to get some fresh air surrounded the duo as they fought to the death with one hiss of clashing lightsabers after another.

At last Ben managed to avoid a vertical lash, and piked his opponent's abdomen. He shuddered to the sheer pain the electric shock was causing him, until he landed on his read end on the floor. Ben made no cheering or high-fives with the crowd. He helped his adversary up and left in silence.

It was dusk at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, and near the end of Ben Solo's life with the peacekeeping knights. He had already made plans of switching allegiance, and now would be the time to put them into action within only a day. With a transponder rigged to be a detonator for a series of concussion bombs, that would be his diversion to exit the temple and rob a spacecraft. As he was still recognised as a Jedi knight, he could navigate around the temple as if he wasn't part of the Jedi's worst enemy.

He brushed past a few other comrades as he made his way to the main power switch at the lowest level of the temple. If that gets blown up instead of being switched off like some military factions usually do, it would take weeks for his victim to get it repaired. All that's ever watching the main power switch were maintenance droids, and even they weren't always there.

The room housing one of the handful of weak spots of the temple was fairly dim, but already more than enough for a Force-sensitive Ben Solo to navigate in and find his spot. He was careful not to walk too fast, since Jedi often have excellent hearing and he wasn't as deep as normal people would imagine. Once he left without catching unwanted attention, he snuck his way to the archives and once he reached there, he no longer had to maintain low profile. He could move around as if he's visiting the archive for some history or knowledge.

However this time his objective wasn't planting explosives. His best shot to do damage there was to install a parasite virus that would be activated at his discretion. The Jedi valued the info there highly, and they would almost always take matter seriously if something bad happens to the archive.

Using a common trick of opening multiple pages developed by bored students with the help of his Force powers, he was able to disguise himself as a person looking up lightsaber history while secretly installing the virus. He also checked the search history thoroughly to make sure he didn't leave any obvious marks on the terminal, a practice he somewhat struggled to learn as he was usually an honest individual.

He also had a habit of going to the mess hall for meals at a distinct time, so if he didn't arrive on time, he might gain the attention of some of his 'friends'. Eventually he decided to take his chances and leave the crime scene, despite knowing that only half of the bombs were ready. The mental pressure he had to deal with to cover up his scheme was starting to take a toll on both his body and brain. _Going up a few stairs to have dinner was never this tiring before._ He thought, but quickly pushed the demoralizing message not only to protect himself but also to keep him going.

He still chatted away with his neighbour like he usually does to get rid of the dead air, but he also uncontrollably ate like a starving lion as he knew he had to get working quickly. The maintenance droids don't show up unless repairs within the temple were needed, and everything felt just fine. But Ben knew better than anyone else other than Snoke that the longer he delayed, the more likely he'll get busted.

He purposely had less than usual to save time, and left discreetly to carry on his dirty work. There were more obstacles for him to get around after dinner, and it could only be the head count that's about to come that's causing it. Some of the more senior Jedi knights gathered at the lower levels, blocking the shortest path to Ben's last waypoint.

Fortunately for him he was able to wait them out and plant his packages without missing the head count. Now all that's left was to wait until midnight and leave the temple for good.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

A Kintan Strider rushed ahead of its comrades to gain ground and tackled an oncoming Ghhhk with two of its four arms waving violently. It thrusted its wooden spear into one of the Ghhhk's arms, disabling it but driving it into rage. It soon found itself sliding back after taking a punch from the Ghhhk's other arm. The Ghhhk attacked again, but after two punches the Strider was able to kick it away, giving itself some space and valuable time to get back on its feet.

The Strider aimed at the Ghhhk's wound, the spear still lodged in its arm, and pulled it as hard as it can until the Ghhhk was on its knees. The Kintan Strider knew no mercy, and proceeded to finish the downed beast. Around the victor was a raging battle far from over, which compelled it to carry on. It stepped away from the now dead opponent, and accelerated towards another comrade in trouble with an attacking Houjix.

The battleground could almost be considered barbaric. None of the fighters were using conventional weapons. The only weapons present were ones that were meant to shed blood, break bones and take lives all in one handheld object.

"It's almost half an hour since we started." Rey broke the silence in the cockpit of the old starfighter.

"That's because someone always takes her time thinking." Leo replied sarcastically as he made another move on the holographic Dejarik board. "Speaking of which, how much longer do we have to go?"

"I expected a Jedi learner to be more patient than this. One more hour." Rey answered after glancing at the nav computer. Leo didn't believe her at first. But since the turret was transparent, the cockpit instruments were easily visible from his seat. _It could've been worse._ He told himself.

He decided he was going to watch the Holonet to kill some time. After a few clicks he was looking at an unending line of news from across the galaxy. But what caught his eye was a horrifying set of images and recordings with the title 'breaking news'. Rey couldn't see nor understand it, but Leo's fists were shaking in a fit of rage and sadness.

"We have just got word that a series of explosions took place in the new Jedi Temple just an hour ago. The exact casualty number is unknown but we can expect it to rise." As the reporter paused, Leo managed to hold back his anger and started meditating, only this time he wanted answers and advice more than inner peace. He was interrupted when the live news resumed. And what came next had confirmed his worst fears. Word got out that the explosions were not an accident. Apparently someone had planted explosives in the temple.

He recalled warning his master Luke Skywalker about such an attack just before left the temple. "But master, that felt distinctly different from normal dreams! At least we should add..."

"No means no, my apprentice. We cannot let virtual illusions control what we do in reality! Now go have some sleep." Despite his best efforts, his stubborn master determined what he saw was nothing more than an unrealistic scenario imagined when he had too much time on his hands. With no one else left to prove his theory, Leo's best and probably his only choice was to save himself. Now he certainly did, but perhaps he had saved only himself, and no one else. Even so, now that he's sure that the Jedi are once again being actively hunted, he and maybe Rey could be alive today and be dead by tomorrow.

"I don't feel like anyone survived." Leo whispered. Even with a minimal amount of midi-chlorians in her veins, Rey could tell a serious pep talk was needed if she and Leo were to survive without the backup of the Jedi Order. She exercised her pilot authority to tune the comms to a different channel to stop him from overthinking, followed by a not-so-well thought and improvised series of motivational lines.

* * *

Over the constantly busy Coruscant orbit were a vast array of ships travelling in and out of the city-planet. Ships jumped to and fro this location, including one aged snub-fighter in a state of repair. Its crew glued their eyes to the Holonet, now their only source of updated information to survive.

"From what I see, we have two ways out." Rey broke the demoralizing silence in the cockpit. "We can try to investigate the incident, or we focus on surviving and find somewhere to hide. After all, the attacks were directed at your religious group." She stated.

Leo couldn't answer right away, knowing that lives he knew and deeply cared about were on the line. He was tempted to get his boots dirty, but without a proper strategy going to Coruscant surface would be meaningless.

"If we did land, where would we even park our ship? It's not a regular spaceship if you haven't noticed already." Leo paused. "I do want to find out who's responsible. But if we don't plan it properly it's only a waste of time."

He paused again to process a plan, but as he did, he had to accept that the simplest plan was the only plan: be there at the temple. After that, they'd have something to use to decide their next move. "Let's go there first. Then worry about the next step."

* * *

"When I said investigate I did not mean this!" Rey complained as Leo led her through the lower levels of what was left of the Jedi temple.

"But it is the most efficient." Leo grinned as he picked up a piece of scorched concrete to inspect it. "Explosives. This reminds me of that incident during the Clone Wars."

Back then, the Jedi temple doubled as an airbase for the Republic forces. At one point, a bomb went off in one of the temple's hangars, killing a number of Jedi knights and clones. And even though Leo wasn't born back then, it smelled like deja vu.

"How do you..."

"I know it when I see it Rey." Leo frowned. His worst fears were confirmed. Until something new happens, his precious Jedi Order should be treated as if it was disbanded.

All of a sudden, Leo's hologram vibrated in his pocket. He promptly inspected it, and slowly clenched his fists as he scanned through the whole notification. There were actually a small hand of survivors, but none of them made it all the way to the hospital. At least that's what the news said.

"I sense...a great darkness. As if a deception is in play...hurry! We have to reach the other side of the temple!" He suddenly shrieked.

He had no time to explain. Now, with a great possibility of facing a clean-up crew, he was very much tempted to get to the history wing of the temple, where some rooms were stocked with a wide variety of lightsabers. They two have to arm themselves to survive the incoming onslaught.


End file.
